PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS
Powerful Photography Techniques
4 Powerful Photography Tips For Beginners!
Let us give you some tips on how to take good photos. The main goal behind the act of taking photos is to preserve moments that are meaningful for our individual and collective history. The great wonder of photography has always been the power that it has to make our milestones a visual and personal asset.
Technology has allowed us to preserve everything in a visual way; but our current photographic practices make it harder for us to spot those moments truly matter the most. That's when professional photography comes into play, allowing people to have dedicated photographs about specific milestones.
We have sieved out four essential tips specially for you, which we believe will help you, whether you are just starting out as a photographer, a weekend photographer, or just curious about the different aspects of photography.
We will be exploring some basic topics – what they are, how they can affect your photos and on the whole, increase your general knowledge in the field of photography. We will not go too in-depth (click on the links if you feel ready to delve deeper into each specific photography tip) and will keep everything reader-friendly. Let's begin!
1. Photography Lighting Tips
Did you know that “photo” in “photography” is a Greek word that means “light”? Evidently, lighting is crucial in taking pictures!
The correct lighting can create the right kind of mood for the right kind of pictures, making you go “aww…” instead of “ugh…”. Although common among amateurs to use the flash, especially in poorly lit areas, the flash often gives photos a harsh and unnatural look, despite capturing that precious moment. Of course, natural lighting is best. But oftentimes, we cannot help situations or venues (like the parties we are at) with poor or bright lighting, but we can definitely manipulate the camera settings to allow more or less light into the camera lens – without using the flash – to capture that ideal picture.
A quick Bespoke tip: if you want to take sharper photos but are in a poorly lit place, try this: increase the camera’s aperture, or the opening of the camera lens, so more light enters, and increase the shutter speed, or the length of time that an image is exposed to light, so the image captured is clearer.
A fun Bespoke lighting tip: when taking portraits, try positioning the light source at the side of your photography subject, instead of always at the front of the subject’s face. This could be at any angle from 0 to 180 degrees at the side. Have a little fun and watch how the light falls and shadows appear at different angles. Small changes to the angle can create different moods for your pictures.
Get more in-depth photography lighting tips for beginners.
2. Photography Angle Tips
Have you ever gone, “Oh, that’s interesting”? Most probably it is because the photographer has played with some kind of angles to evoke in you that particular emotion.
There is a variety of angles in photography that you can experiment with, not just the plain old method of taking pictures at the eye-level and with the subject positioned directly in front of the camera lens.
Did you know that you can take pictures at low and high angles, in relation to the eye level, as well? And even then, you can go 360 degrees at different heights around the subject you are photographing to capture different profiles and create different moods? You can get real playful with the camera! Read more about how angles can impact your photos.
3. Depth of Field Tips
What is depth of field? It is the distance between the front most object and the object in the background of the scene you are capturing. Either one of these can be blurred or sharpened, depending on what you prefer.
In the photograph, you can see one clear point of focus – the child grinning – while the other elements in the photograph are blurred.
So our way of describing depth of field is, basically, how sharp or blurry the area surrounding the main subject in your photograph is. (Remember, there must always be a central focus in your image!)
Although an important element in the photograph above is blurred, it is balanced by sharpening the chief element in it. This technique imbues photographs with a delightful charm, don’t you think?
Depth of field can be achieved by controlling the aperture settings in the camera, or put in layman terms, the size of the opening of the camera lens. This in turns controls the amount of light that passes through. The smaller the opening, the more well defined and well-focused the background, and vice versa. Find out more about depth of field.
4. Rule of Thirds Tips
Often hear this advice – use the rule of thirds! use the rule of thirds! – but don’t know what it is or how? As the name suggests, the rule of thirds divides photographs into three parts horizontally and vertically, so that there are nine equal parts in the pictures. It can help you decide where to (best) position the subject you prefer to focus on, so that the picture ends up being either more pleasing to the eye, more attention-grabbing or more intriguing.
The most popular advice thrown around, the rule of thirds in photography is an effective tool that photographers employ to compose their images. It is used subtly though! When used well, this can help photographs to fascinate viewers and draw them in. This is because rule of thirds maintains the balance of elements in the photographs, so that not everything in the scene being captured demands attention. Certain elements can even be dramatised by using the rule of thirds. Want to get more well-acquainted with rule of thirds?
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Now you are aware of the 4 photography tips, take your camera out and practice. Be patient and soon you will get better!
The next tip to get nicer photos is to know how to pose for photography. Click below to learn more on how to pose for photos.